Looks like Bernie Ecclestone's campaign to price his Formula One circus out of as many tracks as possible may claim Germany.

According to reports, the Hockenheim City Council -- a 94 per cent shareholder in the Hockenheimring track -- has voted unanimously to drop the race. Why? Because it's a giant cash sippy hole.

Last year's race at Hockenheimring lost an estimated 6 MEEYUN Euros ($8.4 million). Yikers. Taxpayers wear the frowny face at those kinds of losses to host racing by trillionaires. (Is there actually an F1 race that makes money? Not that I know of.)

Germany actually has two F1 "ring" tracks -- the other being Nurburing -- which take turns hosting their annual race.

Hockenheimring pulling out has Nurburing in a bit of a tizzy at the prospect of delivering a truckload of money to Bernie EVERY year, as opposed to just every other.

Germany is only marginally important to F1, what with Mercedes-Benz and BMW based in Germany AND five German drivers in the series, including the rising star Sebastian Vettel.

Shockingly, faced with the loss of Germany, Bernie says he's willing to talk.

Former IndyCar driver, current IndyCar team co-owner and VERSUS color dude Robbie “Incredi” Buhl made me a most excellent Dad’s Root Beer/Blue Bunny Ice Cream float at Iowa and talked about his VERSUS life so far.

pressdog: You seem to be having a good time doing the VERSUS broadcast. How’s that going for you?

In May, Robin famously reported that George (right) had been booted from his job as CEO of IMS by his three sisters (Josie, Nancy and Kathy) who, Robin said, were tired of seeing an estimated $600 million family dollars disappear down the IndyCar money pit.

June 29, 2009

I suck for not posting this before the Richmond race, but I dig Arni the Indy Insider's work so much I'm posting it now. Just because I can, and because Arni is wearing something from the stylin' IZOD Indy PR collection. Click HERE to witness the wonderment.

"Just because two AGR cars qualified behind traditional back-packers like Dale Coyne, Dreyer & Reinbold and HVM racing is no cause for alarm" said an IndyCar official. "Certainly we're concerned. We were hoping that a team like Newman Haas Lanigan would have made it a 'Big Four' by now. Going down to a 'Big Two' (Target Chip Ganassi and Penske) would be a step backwards. We have contingency plans to do what we can to make that sound exciting, but we'd rather not go there. So we're taking a measured approach and trying to work with AGR to keep them in the Big Three."